embassy of india -...

Embassy of India

Bogota

No. BOG/201/1/2009 April 19 2010

Monthly Commercial and Economic Report for Colombia, Ecuador and Costa Rica, March 2010

Colombia

i. GDP

GDP growth for 2009 was 0.4%; total GDP in 2009 was US $ 228.61 billion (IMF).

ii. Rate of inflation

Annual inflation 1.84% (March 2010)

Total Trade

US $ 69.48 billion (January – December 2009)

iii. Total trade in billion US$ and its growth to 10 major countries‐ January – December 2009

Country 2009 2008 % of variation

USA 22.34 25.50 ‐12,34%

China 4.67 4.89 ‐4,49%

Venezuela 4.61 7.27 ‐36,59%

Mexico 2.84 3.71 ‐23,55%

Brazil 2.72 2.89 ‐5,89%

Ecuador 1.95 2.31 ‐15,58%

Germany 1.70 1.45 17,24%

France 1.67 1.04 60,57%

Netherlands 1.60 1.19 34,53%

Switzerland 1.41 1.33 6,02%

Source: Colombian Customs Agency

iv. India‐ Colombia Bilateral trade ( January – December 09 as compared to January – December 08)

Exports to Colombia: US $ 503.82 mn (US $ 528.80 mn in 08);

Imports from Colombia US $ 449.13 mn (US $ 15.69 mn in 08)

Total trade US $ 952.95 million (US $ 544.49 in 2008, increase of 75.02%)


v. Top ten items of export from India to Colombia in 2009

Item CIF value in US million Dollars

Share in total exports to Colombia

Vehicles and Auto parts 195.35 38.77%

Organic Chemicals 52.75 10.47%

Miscellaneous Chemical Products

50.31 9.99%

Cotton yarn and woven fabrics of cotton

49.06 9.74%

of cotton

Pharmaceutical Products 41.21 8.18%

Articles of Iron and Steel 13.36 2.65%

Machinery and Mech. Appliances

13.13 2.61%

Man‐made Staple Fibers 11.47 2.28%

Articles of Iron and Steel 10.36 2.06%

Electrical Machinery 8.01 1.59%


vi. Top ten items of Import from Colombia by India in 2009

Item FOB Value in US million Dollar Share in total Imports

Mineral Fuels, mineral oils 436.21 97.12%

Plastics and Articles thereof 6.56 1.46%

Wood and articles of wood 1.95 0.43%

Sugars and sugar confectionery 1.09 0.24%

Copper and Articles thereof 0.8 0.18%

Lead and Articles thereof 0.59 0.13%

Aluminum and Articles thereof 0.39 0.09%

Iron and Steel 0.23 0.05%

Glass and Glassware 0.21 0.05%

Inorganic Chemicals 0.15 0.03%


vii. The principal five export destinations in 2009

USA

Venezuela

Netherlands

Ecuador

Switzerland


viii. The principal five‐import sources in 2009

USA

China

Mexico

Brazil

France


ix. The principal five export commodities in 2009

Mineral oils and fuels

Coffee

Iron & Steel

Meat and edible meat loaf

Plastics and articles thereof


x. The principal five import items in 2009

Machinery and mechanical appliances

Electrical Machinery and Equipment

Aircrafts, spacecrafts and parts

Vehicles and autoparts

Organic Chemicals


i) Other important economic news: Low GDP Grow Rate in 2009: The Government announced that 2009 ended with low GDP growth of 0.5% (2.4% in 2008; 7.5% in 2007). The Government claimed that it had avoided negative growth of the anti‐cyclical policy adopted to overcome the global crisis.

Unemployment rose to 12.6% : The National Administrative Department of Statistics (Dane) reported on 31 March, that the unemployment index in February was 12.6%, 0.1 percentage points more than the figure registered for the same month in 2009, when it was at 12.5%. According to the Dane, during the Dec. 2009 ‐ Feb. 2010 quarter, unemployment was 12.8%.

IMF predicts positive outlook for Colombia: The International Monetary Fund said that Colombia's strong policy framework has helped protect its economy from the global slowdown, setting the stage for a generally positive 2010 outlook. Bolstered by a healthy banking system, "Colombia is well‐placed to confront the challenges.

Tax Collection of governemnt goes up. The Colombian government collected US $8.68 billion in taxes in the first quarter, a 9.6% increase from the same period in 2009, the country's tax agency DIAN. The tax collection in all of 2009 reached Colombian Peso (COP) 68.9 trillion. For

2010, tax collection is expected to reach COP 69.7 trillion. The Colombian government expects to report a consolidated budget deficit equivalent to 3.7% of GDP in 2010, up from 2.8% in 2009.

Colombia‐EU FTA: The industry complained that the Colombia‐EU FTA did not guarantee them with the ability to successfully export their products to the EU, nor did it protect their domestic industry from unfairly subsidized European competitors. The Colombia‐EU FTA is expected to be signed in Madrid on May 19 during the Sixth European‐Latin American and the Caribbean Summit of Heads of State and Governments, which will be attended by Colombian President Alvaro Uribe.

Venezuela: Colombian businesses continue to suffer from trade restrictions implemented by Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez. The restrictions, which aim to block Venezuelan imports of Colombian products, have caused Colombia's exports to its neighbor to drop 77% between January 2009 and January 2010. Colombian exporters complain that the Chavez government is flagrantly violating its commitment to the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT), to which both countries are signatories, and using international trade as a political tool.According to Analdex, Colombia has been able to increase trade to new markets recently, including China, Holand, Italy, Denmark, Canada and Puerto Rico.

ii) India‐ Colombia bilateral relations‐ Latest Development

TEXPROCIL Delegation visited Colombia: A delegation of six important textile firms from India visited Colombia from 6‐8 March 2010. The delegation was organized by the Cotton Textile Export Promotion Council (TEXPROCIL). The Embassy of India in Bogota, in collaboration with the Colombia – India Chamber of Commerce in Bogota and Fenalco in Medellin, organized Buyer Seller Meetings in both cities. The participating companies were Nagreeka Exports RatanTextiles, VTX, Loyal Textile Mills, Gomathy Mills Pvt

India to buy thermal coal from Colombia: Adani Enterprises Ltd., India’s biggest coal importer, agreed to buy thermal coal from Colombia for the first time as surging electricity demand prompted diversification of purchases, an official said.The first cargo of fuel will be imported in a capesize, a vessel that has a carrying capacity of at least 110,000 deadweight tons. The company is negotiating a long‐term contract. Colombia’s Cerrejon, the world’s largest open‐pit mine producing coal for export, may make its first sales to India this year.

Bajaj three wheelers in Colombia: The Colombian firm, Auteco, representatives of Bajaj Auto makers from India for several years, launched the famous Bajaj three wheeler auto rickshaw in Bogota on 24 March. The vehicle has been homologated and has received all the necessary approvals from the Government of Colombia. It will, however, only serve as a taxi for the present in towns with less than 50,000 population, but will be allowed for private use in other cities. Auteco also markets eight different brands of Bajaj motor cycles in the country with imports exceeding US$50 million per annum in vehicles and parts.

Meeting with Esfera: Second Secretary met Mr. Gopikrishna Lingala Head of Strategy and Business Implementation from Esfera BPO solutions, a Colombian company located in Manizales that provides back office services. They plan to join the India Colombia Chamber of Commerce.

Trade Queries for Colombia Received in March 2010

1

ITEM: MOTORCYCLES

NAME: KASHYAP THAKKAR

COMPANY: ROLEX IMPEX CO

Email: [email protected]

2

ITEM: CHEMICALS

NAME: TANMAY MAHAJAN

COMPANY: ALPHA CHEMIKA


3

ITEM: GARMENTS

NAME: ATUL SHARMA

COMPANY: OMGANESH EXPORTS


4

ITEM: PHARMA

NAME: ANIL GANWAT

COMPANY: SHREE SADGURU BIOLOGICALS


5

ITEM: STONES

NAME: RICHA CHATURVEDI

COMPANY: VENUS STONES PRIVATE LTD


6

ITEM: HOSES

NAME: MOHAN

COMPANY: HOSES WORLD


7

ITEM: COTTON YARNS

NAME: GAURAV PAREEK

COMPANY: RUDRAKSHA INTNAL


8

ITEM: PHARMA MACHINERY

NAME: ANKUR PANCHAL

COMPANY: HITECK MACHINERIES


9

ITEM: POLYESTER ZIPPERS

NAME: MAYANK GUPTA

COMPANY: OLYMPIC ZIPPERS

mailto:[email protected]


10

ITEM: STONES

NAME: MANOJ KUMAR

COMPANY: R&M FOREIGN TRADE LTD


11

ITEM: PHARMA

NAME: ABHAY PARULEKAR

COMPANY: SLN PHARMA CHEM


12

ITEM: WOODEN FURNITURE

NAME: SUNIL SHARMA


COMPANY: SUSHIL UDYOG


13

ITEM: GARMENTS

NAME: L.S. SIVAKUMAR

COMPANY: ALS EXPORTS


14

ITEM: SACKS

NAME: AMIT AGARWAL

COMPANY: MAAN



15

ITEM: TOOLS

NAME: SANJAY PATEL

COMPANY: KRISHNA METACRAFT


16

ITEM: CONVEYOR BELTS

NAME: V RAJAN

COMPANY: NORTH LAND RUBBER


17

ITEM: ALUMINUM PILFER PROOF CAPS

NAME: POORMINA PAL

COMPANY: CAPS AND SEAL


18

ITEM: ENGINEERING PRODUCTS

NAME: VIKAS

COMPANY: SRONS ASIA


19

ITEM: CHEMICALS

NAME: SACHIN JHA

COMPANY: SS POLYCHEMICALS PVT


20

ITEM: GRANITE AND MARBLE

NAME: MAHENDRA KUMAR

COMPANY: R&M FOREIGN TRADE LTD


21

ITEM: T SHIRTS

NAME: MOHIT JAIN

COMPANY: MOHIT OVERSEAS



22

ITEM: PHARMA

NAME: PUNEET SHARMA

COMPANY: PROTECH BIOSYSTEMS


23

ITEM: MACHINERY

NAME: S.U. SHAH

COMPANY: ACME MACHINERY


24

ITEM: TEXTILES

NAME: MADHUR SINGHAL

COMPANY: JAIPUR STORES


25

ITEM: PVC VALVES

NAME: NILESH JIVANI

COMPANY: KRANTI PLASTICS

[email protected]

26

ITEM: PLASTICS

NAME: B.K. SINGH

COMPANY: POLYPLAST PVT


27

ITEM: SEVERAL

NAME: UNSPECIFIED

COMPANY: ASAWA INDUSTRIES


28

ITEM: PIPE FITTINGS

NAME: ANIL DHANANIA

COMPANY: SANJAY FORGE PVT


29

ITEM: CINSTRUCTION ITEMS

NAME: AMEYA NISAL

COMPANY: AMEYA NISAL


30

ITEM: GARMENTS

NAME: JTV INTERNATIONAL

COMPANY: NITIN SINGH


31

ITEM: SPICES

NAME: L SUDHIR

COMPANY: SWANANDI ENTERPRISES


32


ITEM: COTTON YARNS

NAME: SANDEEP SHROFF

COMPANY: APEX INTERNATIONAL


33

ITEM: SEVERAL

NAME: MAHESH GUPTA

COMPANY: GOODLUCK STEEL

[email protected]

34

ITEM: CHEMICALS

NAME: VIRAL RAVAL

COMPANY: NESHIEL CHEMICALS PVT


35

ITEM: SOFTWARE DEVELOPMENT

NAME: LAURA ALVAREZ

COMPANY: SYNERGY


36

ITEM: YARNS AND BLANKETS

NAME: ABHINAV

COMPANY: RK FIBRES


37

ITEM: PUMPS

NAME: M UMAR

COMPANY: AQUA SUB ENGINEERING


38

ITEM: GARMENTS

NAME: MR. HARI

COMPANY: GODAVARI VILLAGE CRAFTS


39

ITEM: TEA

NAME: SUNIL GARG

COMPANY: ASIAN TEA EXPORTS


40

ITEM: ENERGIA INTEGRAL ANDINA

NAME: LUISA BAUTISTA

COMPANY: ENERGIA INTEGRAL ANDINA


41

ITEM: IT

NAME: MARCOS CASTILLO

COMPANY: SERVICE SUPPORT GROUP

Email: mcastillo@ssg‐telecom.com

42

ITEM: PHOTOGRAPHIC FILMS

NAME: JUAN MORALES

COMPANY: COMERCIALIZADORA RUV


43

ITEM: ENGINEERING

NAME: CARLOS DELGADO

COMPANY: LABORATORIO MEDY


44

ITEM: MINERALS

NAME: ELICEO HURTADO

COMPANY: GOLD AND COPPER MINE

[email protected]

45

ITEM: EDUCATION MATERIAL

NAME: LUZ BEJARANO

COMPANY: CI ARCANI


46

ITEM: PHARMA

NAME: SHEFALI ROY

COMPANY: EXOTIC NATURALS


Ecuador

i. GDP

GDP in 2009: US $ 55.21 billion (IMF).



Total Trade January 2010

US $ 5.25 billion

iii. Total trade in billion US$ in January 2010


USA 821,14 648,25 26,67%

PANAMA 306,56 295,22 3,84%

VENEZUELA 208,93 180,99 15,44%

PERU 193,07 177,09 9,02%

COLOMBIA 172,32 176,45 ‐2,34%

CHINA 112,52 108,9 3,32%

CHILE 82,06 77,11 6,42%

ITALY 80,28 80,82 ‐0,67%

BRAZIL 76,48 69,95 9,34%

JAPAN 65,63 63,62 3,16%

Source: Central Bank of Ecuador

iv. India‐ Ecuador bilateral trade January 2010 as compared to January 09)

Exports to Ecuador: US $ 8.13 mn (US $ 8.14 in 09);

Imports from Ecuador US $ 0.5 mn (US $ 0.1 in 09)

Total trade US $ 8.63 million (US $ 8.24 in 2008, increase of 4.73%)


v. Top ten items of export from India to Ecuador January 2010

Item CIF value in US million Dollars

Share in total exports to Ecuador


Man‐made Staple Fibers 0.89 10.93%

Plastics and Articles thereof 0.60 7.33%



Articles of Iron and steel 0.34 4.20%

Rubber and Articles thereof 0.28 3.48%

Vehicles other than railways 0.28 3.48%

Man made filaments 0.28 3.48%

Machinery and Mech. Appliances 0.27 3.27%


vi. Top ten items of import from Ecuador by India, January 2010

Item FOB Value in US million Dollar Share in total imports


Aluminum and articles thereof 0.03 5.22%

Live trees and other plants 0.00 0.39%


vii. The principal five export destinations in January 2010

USA

Panama

Peru

Venezuela

Italy


viii. The principal five‐import sources in January 2010

USA

Colombia

Venezuela

China

Brazil


ix. The principal five export commodities in January 2010

Mineral oils and fuels

Edible fruits

Fish and crustaceans

Live trees and other plants

Edible preparations of meat


x. The principal five import items in January 2010

Minerals and fuels

Machinery and mechanical appliances

Vehicles and autoparts

Electrical Machinery and Equipment

Iron and steel


i) Other important economic news:

Colombia to sell electricity to Ecuador to help ease the power shortage caused by a severe drought in the country, Colombian Minister of Mines and Energy said. Colombia has offered to sell an amount of electricity that could meet part of Ecuador's needs.Ecuador has been hit by a severe drought since November, which has dramatically dented the generating capacity of the country's largest hydropower station on the Paute river, which supplies 70 percent of the country's power needs.

Remittance to Ecuador fell: According to a report by Banco Central, remittances Ecuadorans sent to their families in the country totalled $2,495 million in 2009, compared with $2,822 million in 2008, representing an 11.6% decrease, the first time that remittances shrank in relation to a previous year since we've begun analyzing their flow in 2000.

Government revamped Petro‐Ecuador: The Government revamped the State oil company Petroecuador which will shortly be named Petroecuador E.P. The Navy officials who were in charge for about two years handed over finally with President, Admiral Luis Jaramillo handing over to former Admiral Manuel Zapater. The Company still faces problem of production and investment which are to be resolved. Separately, Natural Resources Minister Germanico Pinto chaired the OPEC meeting in Vienna as current President of the grouping at which it was decided not to raise production quotas.

Spanish Company to execute Tourist Train project: On 23 March, Government announced that a Spanish Railway Company, FEVE, would execute a project for a tourist train from Duran in the south‐west to the capital Quito for a value of US$12 million. President Correa had expressed an interest in contracting a rehabilitation of the entire rail network of this trip to the Indian company IRCON but the Ecuador Government agency had not submitted suitable projects despite the offer of a line of credit of US$50 million from the Government of India. GDP growth of Ecuador in 2010: The Government announced that after negative growth in the last quarter of 2009, the year ended with overall GDP growth of 0.36% as compared to 6.52% in 2008. The forecast for 2010 is 0.98% growth.

Ecuador rejected International Arbitration: Ecuador on 31 March, rejected an international arbitration panel decision ordering the country to pay 700 million dollars in damages to US oil giant Chevron. Attorney General Diego Garcia said Quito is "analyzing" the ruling by the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Netherlands, and would use "all legal mechanisms" to respond to the decision. The ruling found that Ecuador had violated a bilateral investment treaty with the United States and is related to seven trade complaints filed between 1991 and 1993 by Texaco Petroleum, which Chevron purchased in 2001. The Ecuadorans allege that the oil company dumped billions of gallons of toxic waste into the Amazon. Some experts estimated in 2008 that Chevron could be liable for damages of up to 27 billion dollars. Meeting of BOP Committee: The meeting of the BOP Committee was held on 22.3.2010. The Chairman then took up the issue of the BOP measures that were put in place by Ecuador which it intended to dismantle in a phased manner. US expressed systemic concern on why Ecuador did not report prior to the 22.1.2010 deadline that they would seek an extension in implementation. In their view the notifications by Ecuador was not in compliance with its commitment to remove BOP measures. India expressed appreciation at the time plan proposed by Ecuador in phasing out its BOP measures and asked them to adhere to it.

i) India‐ Ecuador bilateral relations‐ Latest Development

Plexconcil delegation visited Ecuador: The Embassy organized a Buyer‐Seller Meeting for the Plastics industry in Guayaquil on 16 March. A delegation of businessmen organized by Plexconcil were received by the Chamber of Commerce of Guayaquil and met with several Ecuadorean businessmen at a well attended Buyer‐Seller meeting. The participating companies were Bhayani Plastic India Plastene, Crystal Plastic and Metallizing pvt, MSM Refill Manufacturers.

Trade Queries for Ecuador Received in March 2010

1

ITEM: CONVEJOR BELTS

NAME: V RAJAN

COMPANY: NORTH LAND RUBBER


2

ITEM: GARMENTS

NAME: FERNANDO MONCAYO

COMPANY: ASIAM

Email: fmc@asiam‐lat.com

3

ITEM: YARNS AND BLANKETS

NAME: ABHINAV

COMPANY: RK FIBRES


4

ITEM: PUMPS

NAME: M UMAR



Costa Rica

i. GDP

GDP for 2009 was US $ 29.29 billion (IMF).



Total Trade

US $ 20.17 bn

iii. Total trade in million US$ and its growth to 10 major countries January – December 2009


USA 4,016 4,910 ‐18.21%

MEXICO 754 981 ‐23.12%

CHINA‐TAIWAN 727 955 ‐23.83%

GUATEMALA 513 548 ‐6.36%

PANAMA 476 541 ‐12.05%

NICARAGUA 370 421 ‐12.04%

COLOMBIA 320 414 ‐22.83%

BELGIUM‐LUXEMBURG 290 332 ‐12.52%

SALVADOR 278 352 ‐21.05%

GERMANY 275 376 ‐26.69%

Source: Central Bank of Costa Rica

iv. India‐ Costa Rica bilateral trade ( January – December 09 as compared to January – December 08)

Exports to Costa Rica in 2009: US $ 47.42 mn (US $ 50.15 in 08)

Imports from Costa Rica in 2009 US $ 29.27 mn (US $ 28.49 in 08)

Total trade US $ 76.69 million (US $ 78.64 in 2008, decrease of 2.48%)

Top ten items of export from India to Costa Rica from January to December 09

Item CIF value in US Share in total exports to Costa

million Dollars Rica



Vehicles other than railways 4.05 8.54%

Paper and paperboard 2.00 4.21%

Rubber and Articles thereof 1.87 3.93%

Electrical/electronic machinery 1.66 3.51%


Sets, worn clothing and worn textile articles 1.03 2.17%

Clothing accesories not knitted or crocheted 0.90 1.90%


Source: Procomer

Top ten items of import from Costa Rica by India, January – December 09

Item FOB Value in US million Dollar

Share in total imports From Costa Rica



Glass and glassware 2.33 7.96%


Oil seeds and oleaginous fruits 1.52 5.19%

Electrical/electronic machinery 0.66 2.25%

Articles of iron and steel 0.26 0.86%

Plastics and articles thereof 0.21 0.70%


Photographic, medical and measuring instruments 0.15 0.50%

Source: Procomer

vii. The principal five export destinations (January‐December 2009)

USA

Nicaragua

Belgium

Panama

Guatemala


viii. The principal five‐import sources (January‐December 2009)

USA

Mexico

China

Colombia

Brazil


ix. The principal five export commodities (January‐December 2009)

Manufactures

Agro and sea products

Bananas

Coffee

Meat


x. The principal five import items (January‐December 2009)

Raw material and intermediate products

Consumption goods

Capital goods for industry and Mining

Capital goods for transport

Fuels and oils


i) Other important economic news:

Laura Chinchilla nominated new economic team: President‐elect Laura Chinchilla nominated her economic team with three of the six Ministers being females ‐ the Ministers of Economy, Industry and Commerce; Foreign Trade; and Agriculture and Animal Husbandry. She also named the Ministers of Finance; Public Works and Transport; and Tourism. She announced that there would be a new Executive President of the Central Bank and that she herself would head a newly formed National Competitiveness Council to improve Costa Rica´s exports and competitiveness in other sectors such as education, informatics etc.

India Costa Rica bilateral relation latest development Plexconcil delegation visited Costa Rica: The Embassy organized a Seminar and Buyer‐Seller meeting for the Plexconcil Plastics delegation in San Jose in collaboration with the Costa Rica Council of Importers ‐ CRECEX – in San Jose on 18 March. The event was very well attended with several Costa Rican businessmen showing interest in the Indian Plastic industry.

Trade Queries for Costa Rica Received in March 2010

1

ITEM: PHARMA

NAME: JALINDAR KUMBHAR

COMPANY: CADILA PHARMA


2

ITEM: PUMPS

NAME: M UMAR



embassy of india -...

Documents